Neck Injury & Concussion - Some Similarities

Neck pain and joint restriction caused by a sudden impact and concussion are two conditions in which the cause and the symptoms are very similar and it can sometimes be confusing to distinguish what is causing your symptoms. Both presentations can be caused by rapid acceleration/deceleration which can impact the body or the neck. Because of the close proximity of the head to the neck, it is often the case that if you hit your head with any force that the joints in your neck will also be effected. Although you do not actually have to hit your head to get a concussion, just the sudden change in force through the head can effect the neurones (nerve cells) in the white matter of the brain, stretching them and causing them to become ‘excitable’. In a neck injury where the joints of the neck (including the ligaments and muscles) are forced to move quickly past their normal range, either in a front to back or left to right motion, like with a concussion, you may feel that your equilibrium and balance may have been effected. This is because the neck helps us to orientate our selves in space (a mechanism called proprioception), with this disruption to normal function you might feel wobbly and disorientated and experience nausea, headaches and or neck pain and restriction. As brain tissue cannot feel pain, headaches can sometimes be the result of pain referred form the joints in the neck or from tight muscle attachments this is called a ‘cervicogenic headache’. Obviously it is important to get any head injury checked by a doctor to rule out any bleed in the brain.

Both a neck injury or a concussion may result in brain fog, disorientation or dizziness

With a concussion in the first instance, during this acute, ‘excitable’ phase, when the neurones are being over stimulated you may find that you may want to slow down and rest for a couple of days. Your brain will be using up energy and it is normal to feel very tired for about a week. However, once you are past the first couple of days it is very important to move, light exercise such as walking and normal daily tasks are vital in helping your body to restore normal function and to improve blood flow to the brain. In fact research shows that those that have complete bed rest are more likely to develop Post Concussion Syndrome (PCS). Most peoples symptoms improve from a concussion after about 10 days with a full metabolic recovery taking between 22-45 days i.e you may feel better but it can take a bit longer for full healing to take place. This is why it is best to wait until resuming contact sports. Approximately 30% of people go on to develop PCS. (Sats according to Complete Concussion Management based in the US who also provide some good educational resources) Your doctor or medical professional will be able to assess you for this if you symptoms are not coming from your neck or if your symptoms are not improving.

Once any serious pathology has been ruled out, osteopathy can help with neck pain and cervicogenic headache symptom management by addressing the function of the joints and the tone of the soft tissues around the cranium, neck and back. Treatment combined with exercise, and autonomic nervous system regulation (breathing, relaxation, meditation etc) can usually help decrease symptoms and aid recovery.